The semi-weekly fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1886-1887, 1887-11-29
AN OCEAN HORROR.
4 Dutch Steamer Bound for New
York Sunk i'm a Collision.
A Wild Scramble for Life, and
Many Passengers Drowned.

The Dutch steamer ". A Scholten, Cap
tain Taat left Rotterdam Saturday morning
for New York with 210 passengers on
board, including her passengers and crew
Before she reached Dover Straits a
dense fog set in; and while steaming
down the narrow channel between
Goodwin Sands and the famous chalk cliffs
of England, at eleven o'clock Saturday night,
the steamer came into collision with q coal
steamer, the Rosa Mary, bound for st.
NaZaire. The blow was A mortal one
to the Scholten- A great hole was torn
in her port quarter, through which the
at their posts. Captain Taat promptly or
dered that the boats be lowered, but it was
found that only two were available. The
passengers most of whom had retired to
their hunks for the night, rushed on deck in
their night gowns and filled the air with
piercing shrieks. Many fell on their knees
and prayed aloud. Others struggled to reach
the boats, interfering with the work of the
crew. Some procured life belts and leaped
into the freezing sea. Little children chung
to their mothers, who could do nothing
but shrek with terror An steam was
put on and the SchOlten headed
for Dover, ten miles distant. When within
four miles of that city, just twenty minutes
after the accident happened, the steamer
went down, leaving nothing but the tops of
her maStS visible. OF the 21D persons on board
100 were reported lost. Eighty were saved
All those who had put OH life belts floated
and were rescued by boats from the steamer
Ebro of Sunderland, which cruised around
until four o'clock in the morning. Many of
the rescued lost wives, husbands brothers and
sisters. The survivors were supplied with
clothes and everything possible was done to
insure their comfort.
Knowing that he was only a few miles
from shore, Captain Taat headed the steamer
for the land, hoping to reach the coast before
the waters would engulf the ship, but it was
soon evident his hope would not be realized,
and she was nearly four miles from shore,
and sank within sight of the cliffs.
George Appleby, about % years of age,
who was a passenger from Newcastle to New
York, by way of Rotterdam, and who is
among those rescued, has given the follow
ing accouat of his experiences in connection
with the catastrophe:
There were only nine OF ten English on
board the Scholten, one being young lady
named Sarah Louisa Gold, who belongs to
Tunbridge Wells. [ became friends with a
young man named Stepney, who, like my
self, belongs to Newcastle, and also with
man named Thomas Robson. When we
were about ten miles, | suppose, south
east of Dover, we were all in our hunks
when we heard a tremendous crash. / ran
on deck amidst a general scramble and l
found that the steamer had struck us on the
port bow. At first it did not seem as if any
damage had heen done, but in few minutes
we heard an order to lower the boats. The
sailors managed to lower two boats, but the
three others could not, it seemed, be lowered.
At any rate they were not lowered. One of
them would have held nearly hundred per-
sons. Miss Gold and did not get chance
to get into either of the boats. A fog had
just left the water and the sea was
fairly calm. There were numbers of
life belts on our Vessel and they
were placed where all could reach them.
Miss Gold and L each put one on. About
twenty minutes after the collision our
steamer foundered. We stood on deck until
she went down and then were in the water
together. We could not swim, but we kept
together. Several persons had, like our
selves, put hfe-belts on and these tioated
about in the sea. All the others, with the
exception of those who had got into boats,
went down with the vessel. All who were
rescued from the sea were wearing life
belts. steamer, whicl afterward proved to be
the EbrO, OF Sunderland, came close to the
Sunken vessel, and her boats rescued several
of our passengers and took them on the
steamer. They returned to the wreck and
steamer The vessel that had run into US we
did not see again. Miss Gold and / kept to-
gether, and got drifted toward the rescuing
steamer. The rope was thrown to us and we
held on until the boat came and picked us up.
The young man Stepney is the son of a
Wesleyan minister He states that when the
vessel foundered he was in different part of
the ship from Appleby and Miss Gold and
proceeds: Il ran towards them to tell them
to come to the boat in which was going, but
was stopped by the water, and, on
returning, found my boat adrift. leaped
from the steamer into the sea, and caught
hold of boat and was lifted in. Only two
of the boats, l think, could be launched
Our boat went toward a steamer which
turned out to be the Ebro. Our vessel
had sent up rockets and directly our
whistle commenced blowing. The other
boat was also full and we passed numbers of
persons in the water We were taken to the
Ebro and were there very kindly treated.
The Ebro cruised about and sent her boats to
pick up mauy as she could. The cries
as the Scholten disappeared were heart
rending. In fact all the while we were
crossing in the boat to the Ebro we passed
many persons either side of us in the
water. hut could not take them w randar
any assistance on account of our boat being
full l was very excited, and could not say
how many were in our boat-uhirty or forty
perhaps. The boatSwain of our vessel acted
in a praiseworthy manner. Before the
was displayed, and the Captain and officers
remained on the bridge to the last
Every one who could procure
a belt put one on Three was some
thing wrong with the boat | got in, for men
had to bail it out with their hats, hands or
anything they had. Before the vessel went
down several people plunged overheard with
belts on. After | got on the Ebro the same
boat returned several times looking for
others l saw several men go down, and
women. too, and these seemed exhausted and
unable to hold any longer to things they
had been clinging 10. Children crying
on the deck and the foreigners on board
praying formed terrible scene, and
Shall never forget it Just before the col
lision there had been a little merriment on
hoard and some dancing bI1t we had gone to